Ruto directs KICD to monetise school music and drama festivals
Today, President William Ruto emphasised the need of monetizing the performances from school music and theatre festivals.
In order to make the events that take place during the second term of the year sustainable, he challenged the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to digitise the scripts and make money from this year’s scripts.
At this year’s Kenya Music Festivals State Concert, held at State House Nakuru, the President said he had given orders on how to capitalise on the talent and creativity found in ECDEs, primary and secondary schools, and academic institutions.
The President, who was accompanied by the Minister of Education, Ezekiel Machogu, the Minister of Sports, Culture, and Heritage, Ababu Namwamba, and the Chief Executive Officer of the Teachers’Service Commission, Nancy Macharia, among other dignitaries, suggested that Kenya might have enough resources for the event to support itself.
“There should be a provision for the promotion of teachers involved in the performing arts,” he said. “This will get the programme of carrying forward and commercialising the talent.”
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The ministries of Education and of Sports, Culture, and Heritage should offer training for performing arts teachers both domestically and overseas under the programme, according to Ruto.
The Gala event was moved to Nakuru Girls High School in Nakuru on Wednesday while the Kenya Music Festivals were conducted at Dedan Kimathi University in Nyeri this year.
The 95th annual event reached its apex on Wednesday when the winning teams in several categories performed for the President, who served as their patron.
Ruto argued that scholarships should be available to teachers who receive certificates for their outstanding performances at the annual event.
He disclosed that preparations were being made to rename the Presidential Music Commission the Kenyan Creative Commission.
He stated that preparations were being made to draught the law through the Creative Bill, which will be presented to parliament within the next two months.
He claimed that if the Bill were to become law, each county would have its own talent development studio.
He developed a complex plan to monetize Kenyan content on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok.
I met with the CEO of TikTok Global, and we agreed to use and monetize local content while also regulating the negative content, he said.
According to Ruto, the monthly revenue from these social media networks ranges from Sh300 million to Sh500 million.
In addition, the President disclosed that the highest-paid content producer in Kenya earned a staggering Sh7 million each month.
He concluded by stating that the Music Festivals, which were first held in 1927, were a wonderful way to honour the nation’s vast diversity.
He declared that he wished to see more kids with special needs participating in the festivities.
Ruto directs KICD to monetise school music and drama festivals
